Gaza (Quds News Network)- Gaza’s Government Media Office has condemned the US- and Israeli-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) after it denied involvement in Wednesday’s massacre at one of its aid distribution sites in southern Gaza, where at least 21 starving civilians were killed. Chaos erupted when American mercenaries trapped the crowd and attacked them with pepper spray and live gunfire. What Happened? According to local sources, when the GHF aid distribution point in northern Rafah opened, starving civilians rushed from long distances and were funneled through a narrow corridor to reach the site. When they reached, American mercenaries closed the gate and sprayed pepper spray, causing mass panic and suffocation due to the gas and overcrowding. So far, more than 20 people have been killed. According to survivors, the American mercenaries deliberately closed the gate as aid seekers arrived, causing crushing overcrowding. The Americans then began spraying pepper spray and tear gas, which led to panic and chaos, resulting in people being trampled and killed. One survivor said there were thousands of aid seekers, adding that these are “not aid sites” but “mass death traps” designed to lure starving people. Another survivor, while bidding farewell to a relative, said, “The Americans killed him.” According to medical sources, the majority of the victims were children and fathers who have been starved for months by Israel. False Accusations The controversial foundation confirmed the killings, saying “at least 19 of the victims were trampled and one was stabbed amid a chaotic and dangerous surge, driven by agitators in the crowd.” However, the GHF claimed that “elements within the crowd – armed and affiliated with Hamas – deliberately fomented the unrest,” without providing any evidence. GHF personnel identified multiple firearms in the crowd, the organisation alleged, adding that a US worker was threatened with a firearm by someone in the crowd. The GHF didn’t mention that American mercenaries attacked the aid seekers, leading to chaos and deaths. In response, Gaza’s Government Media Office slammed GHF’s “false and misleading statement”. The Office explained what happened:

• This morning, 21 people were killed — 15 from suffocation and 6 by direct gunfire, with dozens more injured.
• GHF called on hundreds of thousands of civilians to receive aid at a center named ‘SDS3’ in southern Gaza. Once thousands of starving people were gathered inside the narrow iron corridors, deliberately designed to restrict movement, the gates were locked.
• Staff of this “criminal organization”, along with Israeli soldiers, sprayed pepper gas and opened fire on the starving crowd, who had come seeking aid.
• This resulted in mass suffocation, stampedes, and immediate deaths within an enclosed area with no exits, a setting clearly designed to cause killings.
• Testimonies from 14 eyewitnesses consistently confirm what happened. The Government Media Office had earlier released verified video evidence showing members of this American-backed organization firing directly at civilians.
• GHF’s attempt to shift blame onto innocent civilians or Palestinian factions is a transparent and unacceptable tactic aimed at evading legal, ethical, and humanitarian responsibility for a deliberate massacre.
• This is not an isolated incident. To date, over 870 civilians have been killed near or at GHF aid sites, more than 5,700 injuried, and 46 others went missing, making it a “direct participant in the genocide and starvation campaign carried out by the Israeli occupation.”